College choirs to perform Irish tunes and Spanish melodies

Sept. 28, 2013 at 4:28 a.m.

"Irish Tunes and Spanish Melodies," a choral concert, will be presented by the Victoria College Choir and the Victoria Civic Chorus at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in the Leo J. Welder Center for the Performing Arts, 214 N. Main St. The event is free and open to the public.

The concert will mark the inaugural usage of the Welder Center's orchestra ceiling shell.

"The shell panels are permanently installed in the center's fly loft; when deployed, the panels form a floating 'ceiling' above the stage, directing sound toward the audience," said Sue Prudhomme, Victoria College director of cultural affairs. "The need for acoustical improvements was identified by Victoria College when the college acquired the center in 2012. The ceiling shell was funded by the Cloyde and Ethel Lee Tracy Foundation and installed by Secoa Theatre Equipment during the summer."

To showcase the center's acoustics, several different sized singing ensembles will perform.

The a cappella chorus will sing arrangements of Irish folksongs such as "My Gentle Harp," and the combined choirs will sing Handel's "Hallelujah Chorus."

The college choir will sing two Spanish folksongs, "Duermete mi Nino" and "Arroz con Leche," with piano accompaniment by Beverly Cheshire.

Playing Latin percussion, Philip Welder and Stephen Faulk will accompany the chorus in "Son de Camaguey."

Duane Roth will direct the male chorus compositions, and Marylynn Fletcher, VC music professor, will conduct the selections for mixed chorus and women's chorus.

"Our goal with this concert is to learn which types of vocal groups and accompaniments work best in this space," Fletcher said.

For more information, contact Fletcher at 361-572-6425 or marylynn.fletcher@victoriacollege.edu.